Escalators or moving walkways comprise a load-bearing structure which is termed truss. This truss is usually a framework construction which is produced by the manufacturer as a whole unit or in truss modules. The truss or the truss modules or framework modules thereof are installed in a building, in which the truss connects, for example, two levels of the building. The movable components of the escalator or the moving walkway are arranged in the truss, for example a step belt or a plate belt, deflecting axles, a drive shaft as well as the drive motor with transmission, the control thereof, monitoring systems, safety systems and the like. In addition, stationary components such as, for example, balustrades with balustrade bases thereof, comb plates, bearing points, guide tracks and guide rails are also fixedly connected with the truss or framework.
Not only the truss, but also the balustrade bases are clad by means of cladding components and also the balustrade may have cladding components. Escalators with clad balustrades are usually so called high-load stairs used in, in particular, heavily frequented areas such as, for example, railway stations, underground stations and airports.
Through cladding the aforementioned components of a moving walkway or an escalator with cladding components an interior space is delimited relative to the environment of the escalator or the moving walkway. Consequently, the components arranged in this interior space are better protected from environmental influences such as, for example, dirt, water, snow and ice than if they were exposed. However, the cladding components also have the important function of preventing accidents, since apart from the forward run of the step or plate belt and the handrails they cover all movable components of the escalator or moving walkway.
For these reasons all escalators and moving walkways have cladding components which delimit at least an interior space of the escalator or the moving walkway relative to the environment. Some of these cladding components, for example skirt panels or coverings, which face towards the step belt, of the balustrade base and/or of the balustrade are exposed to constant mechanical loads by users, for example due to chaffing shoes or objects such as accompanying luggage. These coverings have to withstand shock-like loads as well such as impacts and kicking by vandals so as to be able to continue to guarantee safe operation of the escalator or the moving walkway.
Due to these requirements a corrosion-resistant steel plate or aluminum plate, which usually has a thickness of 1.5 millimeters to 4.0 millimeters, is used for producing these afore-described cladding components exposed to high levels of load.
Replacing this very expensive material by other materials such as for example, painted steel plates is a less satisfactory solution, since the paint coating is rubbed away even after a short period of time and the places rubbed clean not only impair the appearance of the escalator or the moving walkway, but also impart a less trustworthy image to users. Other materials such as, for example, plastics material sheets or aluminum plates are quickly scratched and worn due to their weak surface and also have to have a greater wall thickness in order to be able to withstand the same shock-like loads as cladding components made from a corrosion-resistant steel plate.